By Jedd Ferris

The First Tennessee Pavilion is shaking with the roar of thousands of screaming fans. An obnoxious announcer over-annunciates with veins popping out of his neck, “We are about to see some of the greatest athletes in the world!”

On a crisp fall afternoon, the trees around Chattanooga are getting ready to shed their leaves, but these “athletes” are about to pack on the pounds.

The annual Krystal Square Off World Hamburger Eating Championship features 13 of the world’s best gurgitators, racing to see how many mini-burgers they can get down and keep down in eight minutes.

Competitive eating is one of the biggest up-and-coming phenomena in the country, and while the debate is out on whether this is actually a sport, some people in the Blue Ridge are obviously eating it up. Youngsters are wandering around with bags of burger swag wearing oversized company t-shirts with their cheeks covered in temporary tattoos with ironic slogans like “Bite Me” and “Me So Hungry.” Even the adults are getting in on the action, happy to slap on their backs an “I’m a Krystal Lover” sticker that they couldn’t resist taking from one of the golden-haired distributing debutants.

These contests are no longer like the old days of the county fair pie showdowns. This is big business with competitors munching for nearly a quarter-million dollars in prize money. ESPN even covers a handful of these eating comps each year, including this burger bonanza-a fact the announcer hammers home repeatedly.

There is a sanctioned eating competition nearly every weekend in the United States, organized under a governing body, the International Federation of Competitive Eating (IFOCE). World records are held for everything from pizza, pancakes, and pickles to tamales, tiramisu, and toasted ravioli. There’s a ranking system of the top 50 eaters in the world, and the elite have come to Chattanooga to stretch their stomachs. As the announcer calls their names, they are chauffeured through the crowd in a shiny convertible Corvette. Each of the eaters possesses an individualistic identity akin to professional wrestlers.

One of the first is Eater X, a 29-year-old with shoulder-length hair that would look like a typical huskily cut surfer dude except for his trademark face paint. As he makes his way through the crowd, a young kid with freckles throws his arm around him and quickly asks for a picture. X is actually Tim Janus, a day trader from New York City, but around here it’s apparent he has reached celebrity status.

Then there’s Sonya “Black Widow” Thomas-a slight, attractive 105-pound woman that looks like she can barely finish a garden salad. She’s proof that in competitive eating bigger does not mean better. Thomas holds 22 records, including titles for chicken wings (161 in 12 minutes) and cheesecake (11 pounds in nine minutes).

There are also some stars on the circuit from the South. One of the standouts is Georgia’s Dale Boone. The requisite league bad boy pushing 300 pounds out of his overalls unapologetically bumps into people as he walks through the crowd wearing a coonskin cap and ringing a large dinner bell. Boone-a ninth-generation direct descendant of Daniel Boone-was the 2002 IFOCE rookie of the year. Yet lately his legend has fallen, as he has dropped out of IFOCE rankings after a recent suspension for a contract violation. Still he holds records for pork and beans (84 ounces in 1 minute 52 seconds) and reindeer sausage (28 in 10 minutes), and is using Krystal to launch a comeback.

But the one eater that is far and away above the pack is Takeru Kobayashi-an international ringer from Nagano, Japan. He’s the Michael Jordan of competitive eating. He’s the face of the sport-holding records for brats, cow brains, rice balls, and an unprecedented five straight wins at the famed Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July International Hot Dog Eating Contest in Coney Island, N.Y., where he holds the world record of 53 and three-quarter dogs in 12 minutes. He’s a slender 160 pounds-making his dominance just as much of an enigma as his person. Speaking very little English, he’s constantly followed by an interpreter. And here he is in the Southeast-saying very little, but receiving screams of admiration-getting set to defend his Krystal Burger crown-trying to surpass the record of 69 burgers in eight minutes that he set last year.

A more passive regional gurgitator and a newcomer on the scene is Virginia’s Seaver Miller. As a life-long big eater, Miller, who sports his day job firefighter jacket and helmet as his trademark competition garb, was a fan of Kobayashi and the circuit. In April he decided to enter a Crab Cake eating comp, finishing seventh. Since then he’s done nine comps and managed to break into the top 20.

“I’m hooked now,” Miller says. “I’ve always been a big eater, and I’ve always eaten a lot, fast.”

When it comes to training Miller says his diet is usually quite healthy, preferring to take down big salads and lean meats on a regular basis. When an event approaches he does some speed work. On the day of competition he has a protein shake in the morning, then works out feverously for a few hours and abstains until the starting bell.

“Everybody has their own methods and nobody really gives away their secrets,” he says. “I’m pretty hungry when it’s time to eat, and that’s been working well for me.”

The crowd erupts as the eaters take the stage. Fans hold up signs that read, “Kobayashi Rules” and “Dale’s Got a Mouth 4 Krystal.” They all stand side-by-side facing the crowd behind a long rectangular table. Behind them girls hold number signs, so the crowd can see the burger progress unfold. Kneeling in front of each eater is a judge that gives the signal when a burger offically goes down the hatch.

The fans are deafeningly loud as the announcer yells, “Go!”

Right out of the gate all of the eaters are scarfing down the burgers with rabid ferocity. Each has their own method to this madness. Some dunk the whole burger in water before consuming. Others separate the burger and bun-first popping the burger, and then soaking the bread to wash it down. Most eaters dunk the bun to keep the esophagus lubricated for the ensuing onslaught.

Kobayashi takes the lead from the start and never seems to slow down his devouring. He uncannily looks like he’s popping the burgers like pills.

As the clock keeps winding down, some eaters finally relent. New Jersey’s Arturo “The Natural” Rios starts getting stuck in the 30s. He covers his mouth, resisting a bit of reflux and looking like a volcano on the brink of eruption. Fortunately for himself and the crowd, he keeps the meat down and finishes with 44 burgers.

Toward the end Kobayashi is being backed into a corner by the shoveling prowess of California’s Joey “Jaws” Chestnut, but in the end he is just too strong. Kobayashi breaks his own record by gorging himself with an astounding 97 burgers. Chestnut, to his credit, also shattered the previous mark by taking down 91 Krystal squares.

For his win Kobayashi gets the majority share of a $30,000 purse, but more importantly he gets another successful spot on national television to expand his celebrity and make more die-hard fans like 23-year-old Justin Smith of Chattanooga. He stumbled upon the growing sport a year ago, and now he can’t get enough. He carries a sign that says “Kobayashi 4 President” and jumps with wild excitement as he inhales burger after burger.

“I like this because it’s a weird, new kind of sport,” Smith says. “Kobayashi shows just how amazing the human body can be.”

Some first-timers, though, were a bit perplexed at what they were witnessing. “I wouldn’t even call this a sport,” says Cary Hughes, who was on hand as an EMT in case one of the competitors choked. Which brings up an interesting point on many levels: how safe is eating months worth of food in one short sitting?

According to the website Nutritiondata.com, a single Krystal Burger has seven grams of fat and 160 calories. That means in a mere eight minutes Kobayashi consumed 15,520 calories and 679 fat grams.

Dr. Kevin Treakle of Asheville Family Medicine says consuming that amount of calories, fat, and sodium is a tremendous shock to the system. The quantity of the food consumed can lead to stretching of the stomach, regurgitation, and gastrointestinal reflux. It can also overload the kidneys, cause hypernatremia, and impair the function of the stomach and colon.

“Consuming seven days worth of calories in eight minutes is a dangerous and reckless misuse of the body,” says Treakle.

Miller, who finished 10th after eating 40 burgers, is not fazed by the risk. But he admits there can be quite a hangover. At the hotdog eating championship Miller consumed 20.5 dogs-the amount of sodium and fat in 12 minutes that he usually does in six months. He had problems hydrating himself and felt sick the next day.

Still with popularity and signing autographs comes validation for something he says he’ll continue to do while it’s fun. “Anything you do can be dangerous,” he says. “People choke while eating normally. I live my life in moderation. Even though I intake a lot of excess calories and fat in that eight-minute time frame, I don’t eat like that every day.”